January 24, 2025: EnerSys has finalized a $199 million funding deal with the US government to support construction of a lithium battery gigafactory in South Carolina.

EnerSys announced the completion of contract and funding negotiations with the Department of Energy on January 17 — less than a year after choosing the site in Greenville.

The 500,000 sq ft plant will have an annual production capacity of 4GWh, manufacturing lithium ion cells exclusively for EnerSys products, targeting key applications across commercial, industrial, and defense end markets.

In particular, the factory will support the needs of critical customers including the US defence department, which EnerSys said has specific requirements for domestically sourced batteries.

Funding for construction — expected to start this year followed by commercial production in 2028 — will be via the energy department’s Office of Manufacturing and Energy Supply Chains.

The company confirmed last September it had been selected to negotiate for the DOE funding under the federal $62 billion Bipartisan Infrastructure Law’s battery materials processing and battery manufacturing grants.